Halim Malkoč (12 August 1917 – 8 February 1947) was a

Bosniak The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...

Imam Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...

and SS ''

Obersturmführer __NOTOC__ (, ; short: ''Ostuf'') was a Nazi Germany paramilitary ranks, Nazi Germany paramilitary rank that was used in several Nazi organisations, such as the Sturmabteilung, SA, Schutzstaffel, SS, National Socialist Motor Corps, NSKK and the ...

'' in the

Waffen-SS The (; ) was the military branch, combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscr ...

division Handschar, and the first

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

awarded the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He received the medal for his involvement in the suppression of the

Villefranche-de-Rouergue Villefranche-de-Rouergue (; ) is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France. Villefranche-de-Rouergue station has rail connections to Toulouse, Figeac and Aurillac. History At the end of the Albigensian Crusade from the northe ...

mutiny of 1943. He was born to a

family in

Bihać Bihać is a city and the administrative centre of Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of river Una (Sava), Una in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina, in th ...

on 12 August 1917.

Military career

Malkoč was a young

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

when the war broke out. He "had served on active duty as an officer in the Yugoslav army and was a gifted military leader". In 1943 he joined the newly formed

Division "Handschar" and was initially appointed an Imam to the "SS-Gebirgs-Pioneer Bataillion 13". In July he and several other Bosnian ulema were sent to

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

for an important three week "''Imam Training Course''" organised by SS

Obergruppenführer (, ) was a paramilitary rank in Nazi Germany that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the ''Sturmabteilung'' (SA) and adopted by the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) one year later. Until April 1942, it was the highest commissioned SS rank after ...

Gottlob Berger Gottlob Christian Berger (16 July 1896 – 5 January 1975) was a German senior Nazi official who held the rank of '' SS-Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS'' (lieutenant general) and was the chief of the SS Main Office responsibl ...

and honorary SS officer

Mohammad Amin al-Husayni Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monotheistic teachings of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, ...

, the

Grand Mufti of Jerusalem The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem is the Sunni Muslim cleric in charge of Jerusalem's Islamic holy places, including Al-Aqsa. The position was created by the British military government led by Ronald Storrs in 1918.See Islamic Leadership in Jerusa ...

. Classes included lessons on "''The Waffen-SS: Its Organization and Ranks''" and

German language German (, ) is a West Germanic language in the Indo-European language family, mainly spoken in Western Europe, Western and Central Europe. It is the majority and Official language, official (or co-official) language in Germany, Austria, Switze ...

training. There were also excursions to the

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Opera and the Babelsberg castle,

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and largest city of the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the Havel, River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

and the Nicholaisee.

Villefranche-de-Rouergue

During training,

Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

"''agents provocateurs''" in the division staged a mutiny on 17 September near

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in which several SS officers were executed. A

called Dr. Schweiger turned to Malkoč for help. The Imam eventually persuading the men to surrender and disarm. A report stated, "To complete this task the doctor sought the assistance of Imam Malkoč, who proved to be quite helpful, demanding complete obedience from the troops."George Lepre, "''Himmler's Bosnian Division; The Handschar Division 1943-1945''" (1997), p. 94. In recognition of his services he was awarded the

, second Class, in October 1943. A year later he was appointed

for the entire division after the first appointee, Imam

Abdulah Muhasilović Abdulah Muhasilović (1898 – unknown) was a Bosnian army chaplain best known for his involvement in the 13th Waffen-SS Division " Handschar". Born in 1898, the son of Bajro Muhasilović, he was raised in Sarajevo. Muhasilović joined the nasc ...

, deserted on 21 October 1944.

Death

After the war, the new Communist government in

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

hanged Malkoč in

on 8 February 1947.

References

Literature

*Lepre, George. ''Himmler's Bosnian Division: The Waffen-SS Handschar Division 1943-1945.'' Atlgen, PA:

Schiffer Military History Schiffer Publishing Ltd. (also known for its imprints Schiffer, Schiffer Craft, Schiffer Military History, Schiffer Kids, REDFeather MBS, Cornell Maritime Press, Tidewater Publishers, Thrums Books, and Geared Up Publications) is a family-owned p ...

, 1997 *Munoz, Antonio J., editor. ''The East Came West: Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist Volunteers in the German Armed Forces.'' (chapters 2 and 13) Bayside, NY: Axis Europa, 2001 *Redžić, Enver, ''“Muslimansko Autonomastvo I 13. SS Divizija".'' Sarajevo: Svjetlost, 1987. {{DEFAULTSORT:Malkoc, Halim 1917 births 1947 deaths Military personnel from Bihać Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnian Waffen-SS personnel Military history of Bosnia and Herzegovina Executed Bosnian Muslim collaborators with Nazi Germany People executed by Yugoslavia by hanging Recipients of the Iron Cross (1939), 2nd class

Military career

Villefranche-de-Rouergue

Death

See also

References

Literature